The proposed oceans supercluster in Atlantic Canada is one of nine proposals shortlisted for the federal government’s $950 million Supercluster Initiative.

Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, was in Halifax on Tuesday to announce the shortlisted applicants and discuss the initiative.

In his March budget, Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced the government will spend as much as $950 million over five years to support “superclusters” of innovation across the country. Officials working on the Atlantic growth strategy, representing the four provinces and the federal government, developed a strategy to tap supercluster funding in ways that would benefit all four provinces.

The Atlantic Canadian oceans cluster would incorporate economic strengths from each province, including those not often associated with ocean industries, such as cybersecurity and smart grids.

“If selected as one of Canada's five superclusters, the Ocean Supercluster would energize Canada's ocean economy by investing in digital ocean technologies that will increase Canada's competitiveness and create middle-class jobs for this generation and the next," said Bain in a statement.

Of more than 50 proposals, involving over 1,000 firms and 350 other participants, nine have been shortlisted and up to five will be selected as Canada's new superclusters.

According to the CBC, these are the other supercluster proposals that have been shortlisted:

From Quebec: an artificial intelligence supercluster to bolster Canadian leadership in AI and data science.

A mobility supercluster focused on innovation and commercialization in the aerospace, ground transportation and advanced manufacturing.

From Ontario: a supercluster looking at transforming Canada's mining sector and focusing on clean resources, clean technology and responsible sourcing of metals.

From Ontario. A supercluster promising to speed up Canada's manufacturing competitiveness.

From the Prairies: A protein supercluster to capture the export market opportunity for safe, nutritious plant-based food.

A supercluster to invest in technologies related to Canada's crop, livestock and agri-food processing sectors.

A infrastructure supercluster promising to change how Canada's infrastructure is designed, built and operated using advanced digital communications, cutting-edge tools and interconnected applications and services.

From British Columbia: a digital technology supercluster dedicated to making Canada better at inventing, developing and applying digital technologies to drive competitiveness in environment and resource technology, precision health and manufacturing. 

Disclosure: The federal government, some provinces and their agencies are clients of Entrevestor.